Which Laptop shall I get???

[SUFC Andy]

Afternoon everyone,

Decided to upgrade from my i5 6300HQ, GTX 970m 8GB, to a newer laptop that will be able to run newer games.

My question is which I go for? I am torn between the Recoil iii RTX and the Octane. I was set on getting the Recoil until I found I can get a desktop GPU inside the Octane. My price limit is around the £1400 mark.

Will the Octane greatly outperform the Recoil due to the desktop GPU? I cannot afford the best CPU for the Octane but I can in the Recoil (9750H), I had to go for the i5 9400F in the Octane, I could stretch to the 9600K but not sure if its worth it.

I do prefer the look of the Recoil but I would rather have the better Laptop!

Any advice would be really helpful as I want this laptop to last the next 4 years being able to play games well.


RECOIL
Chassis & Display
Recoil Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD IPS 144Hz 72% NTSC LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor 9750H (2.6GHz, 4.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 2060 - 6.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st Storage Drive
500GB SEAGATE BARRACUDA 2.5" SSD, (upto 560MB/sR | 535MB/sW)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 3 in 1 Card Reader (SD / SDHC / SDXC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 230W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Battery
Recoil II Series 46WH Lithium Ion Battery
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Sound Card
2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Cinema
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-9260 M.2 (1.73Gbps, 802.11AC) +BT 5.0

OCTANE
Chassis & Display
Octane Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD 144Hz 72% NTSC LED Widescreen (1920x1080) + G-Sync
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-9400F (2.9GHz) 9MB Cache
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 2060 - 6.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st Storage Drive
500GB SEAGATE BARRACUDA 2.5" SSD, (upto 560MB/sR | 535MB/sW)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 330W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Battery
Octane Series 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (82WH)
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 (2.4 Gbps) + BT 5.0


Cheers!

 

[SUFC Andy]

I think I've got this wrong... its the same GPU but a desktop processor.... any advice would still be helpful!

 

[SpyderTracks]

Depends what it’s for? If for gaming, the vortex is the pick of the bunch.

 

[Oussebon]

The Octane's GPUs are the same as the other laptops, it's the CPU that's a desktop CPU, as you say

The Octane is more of a portable workstation.

If you're after a gaming laptop, the Recoil is a good choice, or if you can afford it the 15.6" Vortex thanks to the gsync screen.

 

[SUFC Andy]

What is better about the vortex? Will I still be able to get that within £1400?

Thanks for the replies guys?

 

[SUFC Andy]

And yes its for gaming

 

[SUFC Andy]

The Octane's GPUs are the same as the other laptops, it's the CPU that's a desktop CPU, as you say

The Octane is more of a portable workstation.

If you're after a gaming laptop, the Recoil is a good choice, or if you can afford it the 15.6" Vortex thanks to the gsync screen.

Just had a look at the Vortex. I'm not very clever so what is the advantage about G-SYNC? What makes the Vortex better than the Recoil?

 

[Oussebon]

The Recoil is about £60 more than a Recoil, spec for spec with RTX 2060 GPUs selected.

The selling point is Gsync, which gets rid of screen tearing and helps reduce stutter. It also has thunderbolt as a bonus, so e-GPUs could potentially be an option in the future.

Chassis & Display
Vortex Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD 144Hz LED Widescreen (1920x1080) + G-Sync
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor 9750H (2.6GHz, 4.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 2060 - 6.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st Storage Drive
NOT REQUIRED
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB ADATA SX6000 Pro PCIe M.2 2280 (2100 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 180W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Battery
Vortex IX Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
2 Channel High Def. Audio + Sound BlasterX® Pro-Gaming 360°
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 (2.4 Gbps) + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
1 x USB 3.1 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Keyboard Language
MULTI COLOUR BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Dead Pixel Guarantee
30 Day Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs
Chassis
Clevo PB50RD (6GB RTX-2060, i7-9750H, 144Hz, G-Sync, Thunderbolt)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,352.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/VortexIX-15/SgP5Vgtc4J/

I switched the SSD to a faster, not no more expensive one, and switched faster RAM vs your spec as it's only £16 or so and some games do benefit.

I also added the £5 warranty upgrade and dead pixel guarantee as I'd buy them, personally.

 

[SUFC Andy]

The Recoil is about £60 more than a Recoil, spec for spec with RTX 2060 GPUs selected.

The selling point is Gsync, which gets rid of screen tearing and helps reduce stutter. It also has thunderbolt as a bonus, so e-GPUs could potentially be an option in the future.

Chassis & Display
Vortex Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD 144Hz LED Widescreen (1920x1080) + G-Sync
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor 9750H (2.6GHz, 4.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 2060 - 6.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st Storage Drive
NOT REQUIRED
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB ADATA SX6000 Pro PCIe M.2 2280 (2100 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 180W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Battery
Vortex IX Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
2 Channel High Def. Audio + Sound BlasterX® Pro-Gaming 360°
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 (2.4 Gbps) + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
1 x USB 3.1 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Keyboard Language
MULTI COLOUR BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Dead Pixel Guarantee
30 Day Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs
Chassis
Clevo PB50RD (6GB RTX-2060, i7-9750H, 144Hz, G-Sync, Thunderbolt)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,352.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/VortexIX-15/SgP5Vgtc4J/

I switched the SSD to a faster, not no more expensive one, and switched faster RAM vs your spec as it's only £16 or so and some games do benefit.

I also added the £5 warranty upgrade and dead pixel guarantee as I'd buy them, personally.

Thanks this looks good. Sorry to be stupid but what is a e-GPU??

 

[Oussebon]

There's a fuller explanation of gsync / adaptive sync here:

Gaming Monitors Guide

The monitor is probably the most important component in any gaming build – it defines how you experience games and the hardware the PC should have. Overlooking the monitor can be the single biggest bottleneck to your gaming experience. With recent monitor and graphics card launches, and wider...

www.pcspecialist.co.uk

 

[Oussebon]

Sorry to be stupid but what is a e-GPU??

Sorry, should have said instead of just using alphabet soup

eGPU is an external GPU.

You put a graphics card in an enclosure (small box) and it connects to the PC via thunderbolt with a cable.

In a desktop PC you can just replace the graphics card whenever you want, to upgrade to a newer and more powerful model for instance. In a laptop the GPU is not upgradeable. eGPU is a partial solution to this, letting you use a new GPU with your existing laptop. So you might end up spending a few hundred quid for the box and a few hundred quid for the GPU instead of £1500 on whole new laptop.

Thunderbolt is a very fast connection type, much faster than normal USB, that makes this among other things possible.

You lose a bit of performance of the GPU in the process - and it's not always worth it - but it's still an option to add a more powerful GPU to a laptop.

For me the main selling point of the Vortex is the gsync screen. But the Thunderbolt is a nice bonus as at least you have eGPU as an option, as well as whatever else you might use Thunderbolt for

 

[SUFC Andy]

Sorry, should have said instead of just using alphabet soup

eGPU is an external GPU.

You put a graphics card in an enclosure (small box) and it connects to the PC via thunderbolt with a cable.

In a desktop PC you can just replace the graphics card whenever you want, to upgrade to a newer and more powerful model for instance. In a laptop the GPU is not upgradeable. eGPU is a partial solution to this, letting you use a new GPU with your existing laptop. So you might end up spending a few hundred quid for the box and a few hundred quid for the GPU instead of £1500 on whole new laptop.

Thunderbolt is a very fast connection type, much faster than normal USB, that makes this among other things possible.

You lose a bit of performance of the GPU in the process - and it's not always worth it - but it's still an option to add a more powerful GPU to a laptop.

For me the main selling point of the Vortex is the gsync screen. But the Thunderbolt is a nice bonus as at least you have eGPU as an option, as well as whatever else you might use Thunderbolt for

Thank you this is really helpful. That sounds like a great solution to help the Laptop last longer. I have only had my laptop for about 3 years and it is already past it with the 970m. I wish I could just upgrade it like you said.

Out of interest are the boxes the graphics card fits into available now? What would I search to find them?

This is a huge selling point for me, glad you mentioned it!

 

[SUFC Andy]

The Recoil is about £60 more than a Recoil, spec for spec with RTX 2060 GPUs selected.

The selling point is Gsync, which gets rid of screen tearing and helps reduce stutter. It also has thunderbolt as a bonus, so e-GPUs could potentially be an option in the future.

Chassis & Display
Vortex Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD 144Hz LED Widescreen (1920x1080) + G-Sync
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor 9750H (2.6GHz, 4.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 2060 - 6.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st Storage Drive
NOT REQUIRED
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB ADATA SX6000 Pro PCIe M.2 2280 (2100 MB/R, 1500 MB/W)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 180W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Battery
Vortex IX Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
2 Channel High Def. Audio + Sound BlasterX® Pro-Gaming 360°
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 (2.4 Gbps) + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
1 x USB 3.1 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Keyboard Language
MULTI COLOUR BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Dead Pixel Guarantee
30 Day Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs
Chassis
Clevo PB50RD (6GB RTX-2060, i7-9750H, 144Hz, G-Sync, Thunderbolt)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,352.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/VortexIX-15/SgP5Vgtc4J/

I switched the SSD to a faster, not no more expensive one, and switched faster RAM vs your spec as it's only £16 or so and some games do benefit.

I also added the £5 warranty upgrade and dead pixel guarantee as I'd buy them, personally.

Also how do you feel about having 512gb of storage? Do you think this will be enough. I was debating 1tb but it gets expensive.

 

[Oussebon]

There are quite a few of them, just google External Graphics Card Enclosures.

Like I say, it's not perfect.

Asus XG Station Pro

External graphics finally coming of age?

hexus.net

And as you can't upgrade the CPU in a laptop, you're going to eventually hit CPU bottlenecks anyway.

Also how do you feel about having 512gb of storage? Do you think this will be enough. I was debating 1tb but it gets expensive.

A 1TB SX6000 still fits - just - into the £1400 number even in the Vortex.

You'll likely want more than 500gb storage for gaming, though depends ultimately on you and how many games you have on the go at once. You can add more storage yourself DIY any time you like, but there is an argument for getting the 1TB drive as there are only so many storage bays and managing games across multiple smaller drives is more hassle than fewer larger ones. You probably want to spend your gaming time gaming rather than juggling.

 

[SUFC Andy]

There are quite a few of them, just google External Graphics Card Enclosures.

Like I say, it's not perfect.

Asus XG Station Pro

External graphics finally coming of age?

hexus.net

And as you can't upgrade the CPU in a laptop, you're going to eventually hit CPU bottlenecks anyway.

A 1TB SX6000 still fits - just - into the £1400 number even in the Vortex.

You'll likely want more than 500gb storage for gaming, though depends ultimately on you and how many games you have on the go at once. You can add more storage yourself DIY any time you like, but there is an argument for getting the 1TB drive as there are only so many storage bays and managing games across multiple smaller drives is more hassle than fewer larger ones. You probably want to spend your gaming time gaming rather than juggling.

Thanks mate, you've been really really helpful. Can't thank you enough!

 

[kelstu]

If you are gaming i would think a bigger Hard Drive would be a good idea 512GB wont last 5 minutes as most games are 100GB now.. RDR2 was 112GB... I just bought a gaming laptop and put 2TB in it.. Just an idea.. it depends if you want to keep uninstalling and reinstalling games

 

[Oussebon]

It's not quite accurate that most games are 100gb Certainly there are quite a few that are, but many AA titles are 40-60gb, and other titles considerably smaller.

The Resident Evil 2 remake says it needs 26gb disc space for instance.

 

[kelstu]

sorry i appologise for the miswording.. as an experienced gamer who has had a 1TB hard drive for the last 3 years i was always having to uninstall and install other things.. i cant imagine 500GB for games hense why i chose a 2TB hard drive

 

[Scott]

If the budget allows a 1TB primary would be good for gaming but it's not the most important thing. I certainly wouldn't sacrifice any of the other spec for a little installation hassle.

If looking to use up to 1TB fast storage for gaming it would probably be best to install on a second drive altogether. That way when it comes to clean installs (always a good idea) you can leave them happily on the spare drive.

I have a couple of frequently played games on my fastest drive (500GB 970 Evo, along with Windows), my second "gaming" drive ain't no slouch and holds the vast majority of my games (1TB almost filled). My "next to never" played games are stored in my conventional drive along with all my other media. Works out quite well for me, any primary drive issues are easily resolved with little fuss.

 

[SUFC Andy]

Thanks for the advice guys. Think I'll go for 1TB.

One last question, if I was to push my budget to £1500 and get the RTX 2070 instead of the 2060 would it be worth it?